Let’s Talk About HIV Treatment

If you don’t know me, I’m Dr. Demetre and I’m here to answer all of your questions about HIV.

I’ve been doing HIV medicine since the ‘90s and it has been remarkable to see the advances that we have to treat and prevent HIV.

I remember people had to take pills three times a day with food, without food, with water.

Now, for most people, treatment can be down to one pill a day, which makes it really a bit more straightforward to integrate HIV treatment into your life, like brushing your teeth and all the other things that you would do as a matter of routine.

Also, in treatment there are injectables, which means there’s options open to many people to be able to get an injection once every couple of months.

And that means that you have enough medicine to make sure that your virus is under control.

And so make it a part of your life, self-care. And if you do that, you’re gonna be undetectable.

Your viral load is gonna be that low. You’re not gonna transmit HIV to your partners.

You’re not going to have progression of your HIV disease.

Now, some people can’t get undetectable or don’t get undetectable.

Lower viral loads also result in less risk of transmission and will also improve your health

So, trust your provider and make sure that you’re getting what you need, antiretroviral therapy, prescription medicines.

This video is a joint production of KFF’s GREATER THAN HIV and CDC’s LET’S STOP HIV TOGETHER. This information is shared for educational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice. The views expressed are those of the featured medical professional and reflect information available to that professional at the time of filming.

Always consult a healthcare provider for any personal health decisions. The marks “CDC” and “Let’s Stop HIV Together” are owned by the US Dept. of Health and Human Services and are used with permission. Use of these logos is not an endorsement by HHS or CDC of any particular product, service, or enterprise.